Securing The Borders Of The Kingdom

Securing the Borders of the Kingdom

Reading: Phillipans.2:1-11

What and where is my source of security.

There is a basic passion and desire in all, no matter what walk of life you may come from, to be able to live a life that is free from being molested, be its source internal or external. The actual drive is to live in peace, now peace is more than a state of no violence, no war; more than a state of non-aggression, it is a state of being at one. Singular objectives, singular purpose and being of one mind without any point of disagreement. Many people have recognised the fact that they will never reach this, nor in their experience have they ever seen it to exist, so they opt for something less. They opt for unexpressed aggression and call it peace. Yet in the bible we are told that there is peace for any who are in Christ Jesus, that those who are peace makers shall see God, that this peace of God passes all understanding, yet it is to be an abiding thing within the citizens of the Kingdom of God, as the very presence of God is what secures peace, as He is peace. If we are at peace with our creator, then the very basis of non-peace with fellow man and the creation is destroyed. It is because of mans rebellion from God that he is not even at peace with himself yet alone with anyone else, so when the reason for this state of non-peace is dealt with so those who are in Christ have no reason to be in a state of non-peace, as it is His peace found in His presence and life that we share.

Now Paul in Philippians 1:11 talks about our filling with the “fruit of righteousness,” having it’s expression in the “glory and praise of God.” This fruit is produced by the right relationship between God and believers; it is a simple fact that we are unable to produce this fruit outside of God by our unaided efforts. Now in this manifestation there comes the out pouring of praises to Him. There is a call in Philippians.4:8; to think upon praise-worthy things. Don’t have the world mind, but have the way of thinking that is at peace with the Almighty. Don’t not give habitation to a system that is unable to be at peace, unable to find rest, unable to find security; because they are unable manifest peace. Don’t give place to the mind that is not only warring against creation but against the very source of Peace Himself, but ponder, think upon, dwell upon the praise-worthy thinks of the Almighty and the Almighty Himself. Do not allow your thinking to be so limited and boxed in that God is crowded but. Our prayer, our drive, our desire is that God secures the borders of the Kingdom and not world mind ways of doing things.

A case study in the bible of the different approached in securing the borders of the Kingdom, is found in King David and King Solomon. David when he comes to the thrown has already grasped the fact the quite simply he is not going to be able to defend the whole of the borders all the of the time. He just did not have the resources, be it in manpower, equipment or finance. So there are two options open to him, form alliances with the surrounding nations or trust in the Lord God of Hosts.

Now David had been on the cutting edge of war with the other nations, he had even at one stage worked for the Philistines, he knew the type people that they were, he knew of their practices, he knew of their gods and the demands of their gods. He also knew the Lord God is Israel, he had tasted of something far, far better and the stench of the other nations was obnoxious to him and even more so to his Lord. David prayed for God to secure the borders, and what do we see when God secures the borders. Under David the borders of the Kingdom were increased to the largest they have ever been. Israel has even to this day never had a Kingdom so large. Notice also that under David there was a renaissance, a rebirthing and expansion of the praise and worship of the God with in the nation. Under David there was a massive expansion of the use of instruments and new types of instrument, there came the formal use of choirs. David was a man who learnt that the only truly secure border was one the was guarded and secured by the Lord God. They praised they worshipped they exalted the Lord God so when David and the nation walked in righteousness, the Kingdom was safe from the encroachment of foreign gods and influence, when they sinned God turned from the borders and dealt with them.